In this image take from a security camera, pedestrians scatter as a car drives through a packed afternoon crowd along the Venice Beach boardwalk in Los Angeles, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013. At least a dozen people were injured, two of them critically, according to police, and one person died.

1 dead, 11 hurt as car turns LA seaside into chaos

Aug. 04, 2013 @ 10:56 AM

LOS ANGELES — A rapidly accelerating car driven by a young man screeched across a sidewalk and straight into a crowd enjoying one of Southern California’s most popular boardwalks, killing one person, injuring 11 and leaving the promenade in chaos as he sped out of sight.

The victim died at a hospital a few hours after the Saturday evening crash at the Venice Beach boardwalk, Los Angeles police Lt. Andy Neiman said.

Security video shows the man parking his black car alongside the seaside boardwalk as the sun sank, surveying the idyllic scene for several minutes before getting back into the car and speeding into the crowd. It shows hundreds of people walking lazily or sitting at cafes before the black car suddenly appears and sends them scrambling wildly.

Witnesses reported a horrifying aftermath.

“There was people kind of stumbling around, blood dripping down their legs looking confused not knowing what had happened, people screaming,” said 35-year-old Louisa Hodge, who was out enjoying the day on the Venice Beach boardwalk with a friend visiting from San Diego. “It was blocks and blocks of people just strewn across the sidewalk.”

Firefighters combed the chaotic crowd, finding 12 people wounded and taking 10 of them to the hospital where one later died, fire and police officials said.
Another victim was in critical condition, two more were in serious condition, and the remaining eight had minor injuries, city fire spokesman Brian Humphrey said.

The driver fled the scene and about an hour later, just as police were circulating word that they were seeking a black Dodge with a driver in his 20s, a man walked into a police station in neighboring Santa Monica, told officers he was involved in the boardwalk incident, Neiman said.

Police then found a car nearby that they believe belonged to the man, Neiman said.

Hours later detectives were questioning the man, calling him a person of interest and attempting to determine whether he was the driver, Neiman said.